


Breath Between Worlds

by dontcryMasha



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-07
Updated: 2019-08-18
Packaged: 2020-06-24 08:22:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,285
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19719853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dontcryMasha/pseuds/dontcryMasha
Summary: Hilda, living in the modern-era Lorule, has become plagued with visions of another world suffering great torment. Unable to stand the strange feelings inside her heart from this, she and her best friend, Ravio, go on a journey to find out what's really happening, and how Hilda will ultimately right the wrongs of her past life to save another realm.





	1. The Legend of Lolia

All who live in Hyrule know the story of how their world came to be. For ages, the origin of the Triforce and the three golden goddesses who made it have been common knowledge. Such can also be said for the goddess Hylia, worshipped mostly by the race who bares her likeness, but also known by all races, from the Zoras deep in their domain to the Gorons high in the mountains.

As ages passed by, there came stories of the Hero of Time, sworn to protect a sacred princess. Many say that the princess was once the goddess Hylia, who reincarnated as a mortal to ensure the Hero of Time would rise to the occasion.

These tales, too, stand their ground through time. But the true nature of the story is not known. No historia of Hyrule tells that Hylia was actually a twin.

  
After Din, Naryu and Farore created the world and departed for the Sacred Realm, they left three things behind to their beloved creation; the Triforce and two twin goddess to protect it; Hylia and Lolia.

Hylia found herself to be extraordinarily compassionate, and loved to spend her time learning about the different races and getting to know them. She was methodical and detailed, unsurpassed in her empathy.

Hylia encouraged the building of sacred temples for worship. She gathered Sages who understood the breath of the wild almost as much as she did. She showed the races how to better themselves. She was loved by most and greatly worshipped.

Lolia, on the other hand, was not as social by nature. For reasons unknown, she felt that she took a backseat to Hylia, perhaps by the unlucky nature of their names sounding as if Hylia were “higher” than “low”lia. 

Or maybe it was because Hylia was born a few moments earlier than Lolia, so she felt like the little sister, always doomed to stand in the shadow of Hylia’s greatness. 

This was certainly not the case, but it caused Lolia to grow jealous in time, causing her own resentment to create what she imagined.

Now, Hylia had no idea that her sister felt such a way. There was no superiority complex whatsoever, and Lolia kept her feelings so close that Hylia couldn’t know. She just figured Lolia preferred to stay away.

As time went on, Lolia very slowly started speaking with the creatures of her land, with great distance from Hylia. It was awkward for her, since Hylia had such unmatched poise and kindness, while Lolia seemed shrew and bumbling at times. But she still found many who enjoyed her company.

In the Lanayru region, she spoke with engineers who created robots to help mine the land.

“If she’s so high and mighty,” one of them told her, “Maybe it’s best if you just go and make your own whole land?”

“We didn’t make this land. What entitles me to my own?”

“Well, the forest people asked us to make their temple, right?”

“Right.”

“We did, but we wanted it a different way. We said it could be better! They laughed, so we left. We made our own land out here, and now  _ it’s  _ better. To hell with them!”

Lolia thought about what the engineer said, which was foolish, since no mortal could possibly understand what happened between goddesses. But that didn’t matter to Lolia.

One day, she wandered into the Sacred Realm to sit with the Triforce and hopefully find a solution to her jealousy. 

She considered again what the Lanayru engineer told her, and as she looked around, she wondered if perhaps the Sacred Realm could be changed into a world just for her.

One of Lolia’s powers was the gift of flotation. She floated into glowing sky, which seemed to extend endlessly above, below and to the sides. Once quite high, she got a good look around. There were many islands, not just the one where the Triforce sat. They were certainly too far away for any ordinary person to reach, but Lolia could get there.

As she slowly floated down to the surface of the closest island, she found herself standing before a tall black stone. Curious, she put her hand on it and listened for a feeling, maybe a pulse of earth or whisper of air.

Silence…

Then, a deep groan. A voice from within called to her.

“ _ Free me _ …”

Lolia pressed her hand firmer onto the stone and asked it to open up. A bright white glow emitted from around her hand and the surface of the rock rippled.

She passed through the obsidian wall and found herself in a different realm. Instead of the bright glowing sky of the Sacred Realm, this one was dim and dark, like an evening just as the sun had set. Her deep purple dress looked nearly black.

Here, there were also islands, made from dark chunks of land. This was either a realm that had not yet been chosen by divinity to be populated, or already once had and was now destroyed. Whatever the case, it was peaceful, but oddly so…

“ _ Haa… _ ”

“Who’s there?” Lolia called out.

“ _ Surely you are a goddess _ …”

From the center of the island she stood on, she noticed a dark beast laying there. His eyes closed, he reached out towards Lolia’s general direction.

“ _ Please _ …”

“What’s wrong?”

“ _ Lend a hand to this savage beast, wounded from times cruel flow _ …”

Lolia stepped over to the creature and looked down at him. He appeared to be like a man, but larger than any he had seen, and with crude features. His giant, gray hand reached out to Lolia desperately. 

“What can I do?”

“ _ I need power...I need strength…Is there...a Triforce? _ ”

Lolia shook her head. She knew better than that.

“I can’t give you the Triforce, but…”

She tightened her jaw. Now would be the perfect chance to show how compassionate she could be, just like Hylia!

“I bet I can find a way out of here so that you can heal in my world.”

“ _ Help me _ …”

“Let’s see.”

Lolia spent some time looking around the realm. She floated to a few different islands, but there was nothing on them. She would have to improvise.

“There’s got to be a way I can get out of here and back to my world.”

“ _ Like this _ …”

The beast-man signalled to his chest.

“ _ In here _ …”

Lolia bent down to his level and reached out to his collar, where she pulled out a necklace chain with a glowing orb on the end. Her eyes widened.

“ _ Use this...it is...old magic...it will work _ . _ ” _

“Thank you.”

Lolia removed the necklace from the beast and raised it above her head. She knew how to summon power from charms. Closing her eyes, she asked for the charm’s power to bring her back to her world, and suddenly a beam of light shone forth from the charm, reflecting a doorway in the air.

“I’ll go through and see if this worked,” she said to the stranger, before stepping through.

She had to cover her eyes when she passed through, since she stepped out of the light door and right into the middle of the Lanayru mining facility. A few of the workers recognized her, and although surprised at her sudden appearance, waved.

She shared what she had found with them. She said there was another world, a place that could be  _ all  _ theirs, just through the magical doorway. So she asked them to work as hard as they could to create a technology, mixed with her magic, so they could access the world again.

It took many months, but they were finally successful. In the meantime, Lolia had gone back into the Sacred Realm and managed to take the obsidian stone she originally passed into the other realm with. 

The Lanayru engineers designed a key to open the door, which presented itself as a light mirror. Once it was ready to go, Lolia summoned her magic and opened the doorway once more. She asked for the engineers to help her bring the strange man-beast into their world, which they did.

“I brought help!” Lolia said, running to the beast, who had not moved since she first saw him. “We’ll get you into the light so you can recover.”

“ _ Good _ . _..you are so kind _ ...”

They all gathered around him and helped carry him through the portal and into their world. Once in the light, the man’s face suddenly changed. He was not ill or weak at all! The shadows of the other realm were hiding him too well.

He threw the engineers off him, tossing them like they were ants. Lolia stood paralyzed with fear.

“WHAT A FOOL OF A GODDESS!” the beast shouted.

He took a horn from his belt and sounded it back through the portal, whereupon a giant horde of monsters came from seemingly nowhere and piled into the Lanayru lands. The flooded the ground in a stream of malice that Lolia could not believe was hiding in that realm.

“I’m surprised you didn’t take me straight to your Triforce!” he laughed to Lolia, who was both embarrassed and crying. “No matter, I’ll get there anyway! Now then, you’ve done your duty just fine…”

He drew a dark blade from his belt and went to strike Lolia, but he was interrupted when a flash of white light came from nowhere and halted him.

Adorn in her white dress, Hylia held her hand up to the beast’s blade, stopping it instantly.

“Ha!” the creature scoffed. “Another goddess? I fear you no more than the other.”

Hylia pulled a bow from her back and fired an arrow of light at the beast.

“Get back!” she yelled. “Get back to where you came from!”

“Oh, that won’t be happening,” the beast chuckled. “We won’t stop.”

He snapped his fingers and instantly disappeared, but the demon hordes continued. Hylia did all she could to keep them back, but they were multiplying out of control.

“You have to close that portal!” Hylia shouted to Lolia, who had huddled down to the ground. “You have to! Please!”

Though crippled by shame, Lolia grabbed the mirror from its pedestal and threw it down into the ground. 

“Never use it again,” she mumbled. “Only trouble comes from it.”

Hylia fought back as many monsters as she could, but hundreds had slipped by and were creeping all over the Lanayru region now.

“We have to get together our best warriors,” she told Lolia. “We’ll stop this man.”

Lolia tried, she honestly did. As Hylia rounded up members of the five races, Lolia watched from the side. This was all her fault, and Hylia responded by saving her and doing all she could to stop it from getting worse.

Ultimately, Hylia was successful in stopping the demon lord, who called himself Demise, but with his dying breath, he swore he would come back and get the Triforce.

But Lolia, who was so wounded by her guilt, had nothing to do with it. She told Hylia that she wasn’t worthy of living in that world. She knew there were others out there, and she deserved to exist in one by herself. 

So Lolia went into the Sacred Realm and was never seen again.

But this, too, is just a legend.


	2. The Dream

Two young adults are racing through a muddy forest of low trees, while rains pours from a black sky. They are dirtied from their frightened travel, and judging by the looks on their faces, they are running for their lives.

The girl, a blonde wearing a dress that was once white, suddenly collapses into the dirt. Her companion, a confident man, stops to help her up but she refuses his hand.

“How could we have been so foolish?” the girl asks, staring down at the mud as angry, hopeless tears pour from her eyes.

The young man says nothing, still offering his hand to her.

“How could this have happened?!” she continues, clearly giving her last ounce of strength to hold back complete defeat.

Finally, she turns up to meet her eyes with his, shaking her head feebly from side-to-side.

“There’s nothing more we can do,” she admits pathetically. “Now, our entire kingdom will fall because we couldn’t...because we…”

The young man kneels down and puts his hand on her shoulder. “We can’t stay here,” he says in a soft voice, without a single trace of fear or hesitation. “We have to find shelter so we have a chance to live.”

“ _ Why _ ,” the girl says in a monotonous tone. “Why should be even bother? Why...if we...if everyone...the Champions... _ it’s not fair _ .”

A deafening, otherworldly howl is heard from the distance, shaking the trees around them. The man tugs on his friend’s shoulder. 

“We have to move. There’s not time to consider what will happen.”

But she doesn’t move. She’s frozen, completely paralyzed by whatever has happened. Her face, crippled with guilt, is transfixed on the empty space in front of her. 

She suddenly slams her fists into the mud, curling into a ball. 

“ _ Isn’t there someone, anyone, who can take pity on our plight?! ANYONE!!!!” _

* * *

  
  
  


Hilda woke up sweating profusely, her heart racing in her chest. Clutching the bed around her, she slowly stood up and looked about the bedroom to confirm she was alright.

It was after midnight. The windows were open, letting the last bit of moonlight pass through with the autumn breeze. All was as it should.

She reached over to her nightstand and pulled the smartphone away from its wireless charger. Wincing at the screen's bright light, she swiped it open and sent out a text.

**Me: I had that dream again.**

She lay back in bed, staring at the ceiling. She closed her eyes and nodded off, quickly awoken again by her phone chiming once.

**Ravio: The one with the scared people?**

**Me: Yes.**

**Ravio: Are you sure its not from some movie you saw?**

**Me: You know i thiught about that and i dont thinkt is.**

**Ravio: You can barely type.**

**Ravio: Try to go back to sleep. Dont worry about the dream.**

Hilda closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She could see the dream replaying, crystal clear in her mind. Always the same…

For two months, Hilda had been having that dream. The first time, she thought nothing of it. When it happened again, she told her best friend, Ravio, who wasn't alarmed.

But when she had the exact same thing a third and forth time in two weeks, they both began to wonder.

**Me: Youve said it tourself its weird.**

**Ravio: I know. It is. But its almost 2am and whatever it means wont be different in the morning.**

**Ravio: Sorry. I dont wanna sound rude. It bothers me when youre stressed out thats all.**

Hilda fell asleep with her phone in her hand shortly thereafter.

In the morning, she heard the pleasant song of birds at her window. She got out of bed and wrapped up in her robe, went downstairs to turn on the coffee.

She had done well for herself. Now the owner of a private editing company, most of her work was done from home. She had a massive list of clients and took on new ones regularly. 

Her house was a modest split level tucked away in the south of Central Lorule, about ten miles away from the city center.

With a mug of hot coffee in her hands, she stepped out onto her screened-in porch and sat in her favorite chair to watch the sunrise over her yard.

Taking in a deep breath,. She listened to the windchimes twinkle as cool air rustled the trees around her. It was so perfect, so beautiful, and yet…

She couldn’t shake the feeling that the people in her dream were real.

But if they were, they weren’t from Lorule, or at least not anytime recently. Their clothes were too different, too old; and the land didn’t look familiar at all.

“I hope I’m not calling to early. It’s just, I was worried about you so I thought I would check in. Sorry…call me back when you can. Thanks.”

When Hilda had finished her coffee and came back inside, she had a voicemail on her phone. It was from Ravio, naturally, and calling her first thing after a night of worried texts was completely normal for him.

“Not too early,” Hilda said into the phone when she called him back.

“Oh, good! So um, how are you today?”

“Just getting started still,” she said. 

“And the dream?”

“Worried.”

“It’s probably nothing. I mean, well, uh, even if it  _ was  _ something, what could it mean?”

Hilda shook her head and sighed. “Nothing,” she admitted, knowing she was right. “Whoever they are, they aren’t around here. It’s just a vision or something.”

“Maybe a memory?”

Hilda paused.

Perhaps.

“ _ Oh _ ,” she said, startled. “This whole time I’ve thought it was a prediction, maybe it’s a memory? Maybe, yes! That’s it...that’s exactly it. Why else would they look so different? It’s not happening now, nor is it about to happen...it already has!”

Ravio laughed nervously. “I didn’t expect you to run with that so far…”

“No, no, I’m glad,” said Hilda, excited now, but in a desperate way. “I know exactly what to do. I think I’ll be out of the home office today, so be sure to take messages if I get calls.”

“Haah...okay,” Ravio said with a tight sigh. “I won’t ask where you’re going, just promise me one thing?”

“I’ll try. What is it?”

“Don’t do anything stupid.”

Hilda laughed. “I won’t. Talk to you later.” 

She knew exactly where to go.

* * *

Frane’s Parlor was a hole in the wall across the street from her favorite downtown Central Lorule diner. Though from the outside it appeared to be a vacant shop, if you dared to open the blacked-out windows, you would find yourself in a cozy, warm waiting room with dark purple walls and salt crystal lamps, which is what Hilda did for the very first time.

She knew it would be calm inside, based on what others had told her, but she didn’t expect it to be  _ that  _ inviting.

A warm incense was burning next to a fountain on a table beside a red sofa. The only doorway further inside was shielded by a bead curtain.

Upon entering, the twinkle of bells of the door alerted someone to greet Hilda. She was old, hunched over and most of her body covered by robes and scarves expect for her face. She smiled wide when she saw Hilda.

“A new customer,” said the woman, bowing. “I knew you would be here. Your first reading, today?

“Not just a reading,” said Hilda. 

“Of course not, of course. Would you please follow me to the first door, dear?”

“Okay.”

They passed through the bead curtain to a hallway covered with multicolored tapestries. The old woman, who introduced herself as Inga, directed Hilda to the first door.

“A cleansing room,” she explained, bowing again. “Please, enter.”

Hilda stepped into the tiny, dark room. Inga followed with a lit candle in her hands. She placed it in the corner and slipped around Hilda. 

“Rest upon the floor,” said Inga.

With some hesitation, Hilda did so. There was a tiny pillow to prop up her head.

Inga picked up a padded mallet and went to the other side of the room. 

“Close your eyes,” she said pleasantly, and began to lightly drum on a gong.

It turned out the room was for gong bathing, and the wall Inga faced had many. Hilda closed her eyes and enjoyed the sensation, although she wasn’t sure what to think of it.

The gongs droned, then were individually chimed. 

When all of the noises finally subsided, Inga let the room fall silent for a few minutes. 

“You are here to see into your past lives,” she said. “You are bothered by your dreams.”

Hilda, who was nearly asleep from the bath, suddenly opened her eyes in shock. Inga had been recommended to her by many people because of her incredible ability, but Hilda did not expect her to be a straight-up mind reader.

“Y-yes,” said Hilda.

“There is no need to be frightened, my dear,” said Inga, as calmly as possible. “My gifts are not here to shock or terrorize. They are here to guide and assist. Now then…”

Inga sat on her knees beside Hilda and held her hand over the young girl’s face, about five inches away.

“Countless past lives, yes, yes...very rich, oh yes...how wonderful…”

Inga laughed happily.

“My dear, you have lived the life of a princess many, many times.”

“I  _ have? _ ”

“Oh, yes. How wonderful, truly wonderful...but this isn’t what troubles you, no...this isn’t what plagues your consciousness...I sense some guilt, some terrible, deep-seated guilt...oh, we need to find the root of this. We need to cut the chords so you may move on…”

Hilda winced. She felt her palms grow clammy. 

“As I said, my dear,” Inga continued, “We are here to assist. This is a healing process, this is…”

Suddenly, Inga stopped.

She said nothing.

“What?” Hilda asked. “What’s wrong? What do you see?”

“I…”

Inga stood up on a turned on the overhead lamp, blinding Hilda. She put her hands over her face, but when she adjusted to the light, she saw Inga staring with her eyes wide open.

“What the fuck did you see?!” Hilda asked, getting angry now.

Inga, looking rather distraught and almost scared, reached out to Hilda held both of her hands. Inga was trembling.

“I-I’m terribly sorry, my dear,” she said. All of the sudden, she was crying. “I don’t know what to tell you. I don’t know what I saw. I…”

“What did it look like?! It must have been  _ something!  _ You need to tell me! It’s  _ my  _ past life!”

“I...I saw...I saw a dark world, an evil beast...I saw the tears of an angel, the deepest, saddest regret...oh, I don’t know what this means or what you’ve been through, but, my dear Hilda, I have  _ never  _ had such a vision. I…”

“What do I do?!”

Inga squeezed Hilda’s hands.

“I need to meditate on this and find an answer. Oh, dear child, I am so sorry, but...but we will figure this out. Yes, I will help you through this.”


	3. The Mystery

****

Hilda was so upset by her experience with Inga that she didn’t even tell Ravio, who knew almost everything about her. They had been childhood friends and she eventually hired him to help with the editing company. They were practically inseparable, but this bizarre incident was too strange to share.

She went home and made some tea and toast, but the horrific look on Inga’s face wouldn’t leave her mind. 

A dark world…

An evil beast…

Hilda would have preferred to focus on her past lives as a princess, but it was a moot point now.

Or maybe it was merely a coincidence, and Inga wasn’t all she cracked up to be. But that couldn’t be true, it was  _ too  _ much a coincidence...right?

Ravio had sent her an email detailing how the work day went, and he also asked if she was able to figure anything out. Hilda couldn’t bring herself to reply. Instead, she took some medicine to help her sleep and made an early night. 

Fear of the dream--or something else--made for a poor sleep, but she managed a couple hours anyway and did her best to face the new day.

She bumbled through her work, anxious to hear back from Inga. How long would she have to “meditate” on it? 

Pausing around noon for lunch, she got a couple of text messages from Ravio.

**Ravio: Everything okay?**

**Ravio: I sent you an email last night. Did you get it?**

**Me: Yes it’s good. Thanks.**

**Ravio: Did anything happen?**

Hilda stared at the screen for a few moments.

**Me: No, not yet.**

She tightened her jaw and put the phone away, but as soon as she walked back into the kitchen, it rang.

“Seriously?” she said to herself, assuming it was Ravio not taking no for an answer.

It was a number she didn’t recognize, which immediately sent a chill down her spine.

“Hello?”

“Yes, is this Miss Hilda?”

It was Inga’s old voice. Hilda felt like the floor has disappeared beneath her.

“Yes is it.”

“Good day, my dear. It is Inga from Frane’s Parlor. I sense you didn’t sleep well.”

Hesitating, Hilda explained, “I’m a little stressed for all of this, as you might understand.”

“Of course, of course. As am I. I wanted to apologize again for my sudden shock, but you must understand how unusual the vision was.”

“It’s okay…’

“All formalities aside, my dear, I have spoken to my guides and I wish to meet with you again. Perhaps we can clear some of the fog. Would that be alright with you? Or are you too nervous to continue?

“I want to know. I’ll be right over.”

Hilda hung up the phone and got washed up. She stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror, focused on her diligent eyes. 

“No fear,” she thought to herself. “If you were once a princess, you can face this like a princess. Remember, it might not even be true. Take it with a grain of salt and maybe we’ll at least figure out that dream. It’s probably nothing, just a vivid imagination, I don’t know…”

****  
  


The same kind of incense was burning in Frane’s Parlor, but this time Hilda came through the door with her heart racing. Before she could sit on the red sofa, Inga appeared, once more adorned with colorful scarves. She smiled warmly when she saw Hilda.

“It is nice to see you, Miss Hilda,” she said, bowing slightly. “Hopefully we will have a more comfortable session today.”

“Yes, that’s my hope.”

“Please, follow me.”

They went to a different room this time. Instead of gongs, this one had many tables that were filled with large crystals, some polished shapes but others were natural points, not to mention a few geodes.

Many candles were already light, casting beautiful reflections and glows around the room. Hilda instantly felt at peace when she stepped within.

On the wall was a large gold plaque of the Triforce, a symbol that supposedly represented Lorule and everything good about it. The three inverted triangles were mostly seen in New Age books, widely regarded as hocus pocus that people made up years ago. It was no surprise to Hilda that Inga had one.

“Yesterday,” Inga began, standing beneath the Triforce, “We entered the cleansing room where you were bathed by the sound of the gongs. It draws out any impurities in your soul so that I can scan it safely. Typically, when I perform a scan, I pick up on small things that a person has done wrong or feel bad about. It’s hardly ever a profound experience. But with you…”

Hilda could hear herself breathing. Her hands were sweating. As much as she told herself it might not be true, she was terrified.

“I sensed something astronomically large, larger than us both. Today, I would like to look into the mirror of your mind and see what it reflects.”

“Okay…”

“With your permission, I would like to send you into a past-life regression.”

“What does that mean?”

Inga brought out two chairs and had them face each other, sat down on one and offered Hilda the other. Apprehensively, Hilda sat.

“It means that you will go into a guided trance, whereupon the memories of your past lives with return.”

Hilda adjusted her seat. “Could it...be frightening?”

Wincing, Inga said, “ _ Yes _ , it could, but...my dear, if you want to know, this is the only place to start.”

“Okay…”

“To proceed, give me both of your hands.”

Hilda slowly held her hands out towards the old woman. They were shaking and her palms were sweating profusely.

“Sorry.”

“Quite alright, my dear. Just relax and try to focus on my words.”

Inga began to chant a strange language of low, calm syllables. Hilda did as instructed. She closed her eyes and listened to Inga’s words, attempting to clear her mind of any distractions.

Unfortunately, she was too stressed out.

“Relax,” said Inga.

“It’s hard. I’m scared.”

“There is nothing to be scared of,” Inga reassured her, squeezing her hands gently. “If you see anything scary, tell me you want to wake up and I will bring you home. Now let’s try this again…”

Once more, Hilda closed her eyes and focused on Inga’s words.

Ah…

Deh…

Zoh…

Mah…

Ah…

Lah…

Dee…

Inga’s words began to fade away, and the sound of a harp replaced it. Hilda was far away. She was dreaming?

“Ravio?”

Hilda heard her voice, but she hadn’t spoken. 

In her mind, she saw a woman who looked similar to her. She was wearing a long dress, staring out of a tall, marble window.

“I’ve been waiting all day for you.”

The woman turned around and faced a man who looked remarkably like Hilda’s best friend. He gave the woman a bow and apologized. He sounded different than the Ravio she knew.

“I’m sorry, your highness.”

“Oh, enough of that. You don’t have to call me that.”

“Um, I’m sorry, Hilda. What did you want to tell me?”

“The dream has returned.”

“The one about the goddess?”

“Yes.”

“But, your high-- _ Hilda _ , we’ve checked all of Lorule and there is no sacred fountain.”

“Keep looking. It’s there.”

“Our top researchers have told me that there is no sacred fountain and there is no sign of a goddess ever existing.”

“I really don’t want to argue. You all need to keep looking. I’m telling you; there  _ was  _ a goddess. She came here from another land because she did something  _ wrong _ . Before she died, she built a sacred fountain. That fountain is the key to solving this mystery. It’s the key to stopping the Great Calamity.”

All of the sudden, Hilda snapped out of it. 

She was back in Inga’s room, her hands still held by the psychic.

“Oh…”

Hilda withdrew her hands, staring at Inga.

“What did you see?” asked Inga.

Hilda cleared her throat. “What did  _ you  _ see?” she asked.

“I saw a woman just like you, but from a long time ago. She was also being haunted by a dream, but it wasn’t the dream you’re having. This one was about a goddess--”

“--Who supposedly built a sacred fountain.”

Inga smiled. “Then you have been there, too,” she said. “Miss Hilda? Did you enjoy seeing your past life?”

“It really was me, huh?”

“That was one of the times you were a princess, in case you couldn’t tell.”

“That was my best friend, too. We looked the same.”

“As it tends to happen, as it tends to happen,” Inga said, nodding slowly. She stood up and put her chair away. 

“Do you think they found the fountain?”

“We may never know,” said Inga. “But something tells me they did not, or you wouldn’t be in the position you are now.”

Hilda frowned, standing up and offering the chair to Inga. “Do you suppose I should look for it now?”

Inga put the second chair away and stepped up to Hilda, putting a hand on her arm. She smiled warmly at the young woman and said in a gentle whisper, “You worked so hard in that lifetime to find it, perhaps you owe it to yourself to solve the mystery.”


End file.
